What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

RV-7/7a Plan Gottcha's

W414 DWG 10A

Awesome sauce. Thank you Mike. I'll kick it off.
When you build the W414 aileron hinge bracket. The plans call for flush head on the outboard side. Put them in the other way. Flush head on the inboard side. Otherwise the shop head can become a clearance problem.
r9oi9y.jpg
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Awesome sauce. Thank you Mike. I'll kick it off.
When you build the W414 aileron hinge bracket. The plans call for flush head on the outboard side. Put them in the other way. Flush head on the inboard side. Otherwise the shop head can become a clearance problem.
r9oi9y.jpg

FYI ... from Sterling earlier in the year ...

The RV-7 Aileron brackets will both have the rivets flush on the outboard side of the assembly.
Sterling

On 9 Jan 2014 at 0:15, William Bencze wrote:

HI Vans, I'm putting together the outboard aileron brackets for my -7and have a question about which side to put the flush heads on ... It seems that the note from dwg 10A, W-413 assy was inadvertently duplicated for W-414 assy, implying that the flush heads of the AN426 rivets should be on the outboard side (text is the same as for W-413, including the call-outs for the W-413 components).It would seem that the flush heads should be on the inboard side of the W-414 assy to avoid any interference with the aileron after installation. See the red markup on the photo below. Which is the proper side?

Thanks much, Bill Bencze Builder 74152
 
DWG 39 F-631D and C angles...very easy to misread the plans and make them wrong (e.g., backwards, upside down, what have you). Ask me how I know this.
 
W=414-L & R

Checking Dwg 9, the outboard end of the aileron leading edge skin has to clear the W-414-C angle and its protruding rivets, which are well inboard of the rivets back near the bearing, so would not expect the shop ends of these rivets to be a factor if on the inboard side, with the flush head on the outside. I'm hoping so, as mine are built per plans, but I'm not to the point of mounting the ailerons yet.
 
Tip Up Canopy release mechanism: C-621 and C-622

When building the Tip Up Canopy Release mechanism be careful at the C-621 and C-622 dimensions on drawing 47:



The length of both parts are shown between the holes and is not the total length as is usually the case elsewhere on the plans.
If you make these dimensions the total length you will end up 1 inch short.

Don't ask me how I know... It seems I'm not the only one to have done this mistake.

Alain.
 
If your building a 7 with a quick build fuselage.
One day I was sitting on a stool and wondering what the single hole was near the trailing edge of the wing on the fuselage.

I looked everywhere. Then found out it was an index hole for the step installation... This bugged me for a couple of days.
Jack
 
Last edited:
W-716 Pushrods

Don't trust the dimensions shown on the plans as they may end up being too short for some builds. Even though they are given in 1/32's! If you want to build these before fitting the wings to the fuselage then finish the wing end and cut the tubes longer than shown (search the threads for recommended extra lengths) and finish the fuse end later. Otherwise, you might be ordering more pushrod tubes and/or rod ends.

Some fit as shown, but others end up too short. No good answer as to why except that these are all built a little different despite match drilled parts.
 
Tip Up Canopy release mechanism: C-621 and C-622

It is correct that the standard practice in dimensioning a part such as this is to show the furthest dimension from the part as an overall, with shorter dimensions running "inside", or closer to the part, from there. The exception is when the interior dimension is more critical than the overall, which appears to be the case here. If the part was dimensioned overall, with holes dimensioned 1/4" from the end, the error in the actual distance between the holes could be off by as much as the sum of three measuring, marking, and cutting/drilling operation errors, instead of one. It is likely, but not guaranteed, that some of the 3 possible errors would partially cancel each other out, but no need to take the chance.
 
F-770 rivet call outs at the longeron

When referencing the rivet call out on plans page 28 be sure to check page 44 for the screw call out. There are nine locations under the horizontal stabilizer that will be tapped for screws to attach the lower tail fairing. On page 28 it shows rivets in those locations.
 
QB wings will need the rear spar trimed to corect sweep when doing the rear spar - fuse drilling.
 
Horizontal Stabilizer DWG 3

I wanted to document some of the issues I found with the revised manual pages for noobies. If this is your first component, I suggest building the Vertical Stab first. There are a few tricky spots on the HS.
1. Page 6-2. Drill a #30 relief hole in HS702.
I marked the location of the hole according to plans then placed the 702 spar on a 45 degree square and center punched with the punch held 90 degrees to the bench. This placed the mark exactly at the 1/2 radius bend line of the spar flange. From here it's easy to enlarge to 1/4" and trim the ends of the flange per plan.
There is also a trim on the ends of the spar flanges shown on the trim detail where the most inboard skin hole would be. This part can't be cut until you know where the second hole from the center on the spar flange will end up.
2. Bend the HS 710 and 714 angles
Mark the line, place in a vice between pieces of wood block. Measure the starting point with a protractor and bend carefully till the protractor reads 6 degrees. Creep up slowly. Remove it and check several times. Note HS714 is much harder to bend than HS710.
3. Notch the aft flange of HS00006.
Don't do it per plans. Place it between 710 and 714 and see how much needs to be cut. It's not much.
4. Prepare the ribs.
I recommend drawing center lines on the flanges of the ribs and the spars. They come in handy later.
5. Page 6-3. Match drill the holes in the skin to the HS00005 rib.
The manual then directs to clamp parts together to drill flange to spar holes. I would not drill skin holes till all structural holes are drilled and clekoed tight.
As usual YMMV.
 
When referencing the rivet call out on plans page 28 be sure to check page 44 for the screw call out. There are nine locations under the horizontal stabilizer that will be tapped for screws to attach the lower tail fairing. On page 28 it shows rivets in those locations.

this faring will never need to be removed..... just rivet it on.
 
F-601J DWG 19

When you fabricate the F-601J Angle, make note that it doesn't lay flat against the F-601M Stiffener. There's a note on the plan to set it 3/32" above the top face of the stiffener. There is a note to radius the edge to fit inside the stiffener but it requires very little as it is not resting on the flange.
More parts for my scrap pile and more waiting for aluminum angle. My fault. :mad:
 
F-601P DWG 19

When you fabricate F601P, don't drill the hole per plan. Radius the edge, fillet the corners so it fits into the notch in F-601C. Place it in the assembly, cleko the surrounding parts and mark the hole from the back side with a sharpie. Then remove it and drill the hole where it needs to be. You'll get a better fit on the part. Yea. I made two more.
 
F-633, DWG 11

The destructions say "fabricate F-633". After studying the plans for a detail, I finally looked at the inventory. It's already built. They are in Subkit 13.
 
Maybe this would be a good place to mention...

I believe more than one of us has probably searched high and low for angle pieces to make F-628B, F-629B and other pieces. I know I had a stack of long angle pieces that were packed with the wing spars, all of it carefully put away and was not sure which were used for the fuselage longerons and which were safe to cut up.

Fuse longerons are .125 angle. The .063 angle can be used where needed, so you (probably) don't have to order more from Van's.
 
WD610/WD611/WD612, DWG 38

This is starting to get an annoying.
The destructions say to grind the columns and bushings to a slip fit into the column weldments. No problem. Note that the control sticks should pivot smoothly on the bushings just like the bellcranks. So the bushing should be a 64th-32nd longer than the column. No problem. Done that. The problem is, in my case, the bushing does not fit well. I had to clean up the hole in the column so the bushing rotates smoothly.
After looking closely at these holes, the welding process leaves bumps inside the hole. They even zip tied the bushing inside the column as if it would fall out. Mine fit so poor, I had to drive them out.
 
This is starting to get an annoying.
The destructions say to grind the columns and bushings to a slip fit into the column weldments. No problem. Note that the control sticks should pivot smoothly on the bushings just like the bellcranks. So the bushing should be a 64th-32nd longer than the column. No problem. Done that. The problem is, in my case, the bushing does not fit well. I had to clean up the hole in the column so the bushing rotates smoothly.
After looking closely at these holes, the welding process leaves bumps inside the hole. They even zip tied the bushing inside the column as if it would fall out. Mine fit so poor, I had to drive them out.

These bushings in the stick are problematic. The tube welded to the stick gets distorted slightly, then the tube is DRILLED, and it is typically no longer round. I have two sticks to prove it. You would do well first to ream the tube for the bushing, then measure both. It will likely be loose, but with a little extra length before installation, it will crush slightly and expand to help fill the gap. More than .001 clearance and the stick will be loose.

I have many more details and a long tale to go with them. Let us know more specifics of your problem.

My original stick was loose, in the tale, a new stick was purchased, still loose, and I made a custom bushing to fit. Fits nicely now, no slop.
 
These bushings in the stick are problematic. The tube welded to the stick gets distorted slightly, then the tube is DRILLED, and it is typically no longer round. I have two sticks to prove it. You would do well first to ream the tube for the bushing, then measure both. It will likely be loose, but with a little extra length before installation, it will crush slightly and expand to help fill the gap. More than .001 clearance and the stick will be loose.

I have many more details and a long tale to go with them. Let us know more specifics of your problem.

My original stick was loose, in the tale, a new stick was purchased, still loose, and I made a custom bushing to fit. Fits nicely now, no slop.

Thanks. Mine are the opposite. I had to drive them out the first time.
They say grind to a slip fit but as you say, the holes really need to be dressed before removing material from the bushing. I believe the pilot side is just a tiny bit out of round but the reamer goes through just fine. I'm going to examine more carefully tomorrow before touching the bushing.
The other one, copilot, is slick with just a little polishing of the tube with 400 and 600.
Thanks
 
Does not change my comment

this faring will never need to be removed..... just rivet it on.

The fuselage plans have you rivet those locations. Later when you get the finishing kit you find out something else. Screw the fairings on or rivet them on does not change the need to know about those locations.
 
Thanks. Mine are the opposite. I had to drive them out the first time.
They say grind to a slip fit but as you say, the holes really need to be dressed before removing material from the bushing. I believe the pilot side is just a tiny bit out of round but the reamer goes through just fine. I'm going to examine more carefully tomorrow before touching the bushing.
The other one, copilot, is slick with just a little polishing of the tube with 400 and 600.
Thanks
Good Luck, you know that the 1/2" on each end really does the work, and if the bore, or bushing, is not straight it will bind. Check each end by inserting the bush just 1/2". If that helps, then you can chuck the bush in a drill and make it an hourglass shape with a few thousands off the center and help. Since the proper reamer goes through, I wonder about the straightness and concentricity of the bush.

Just a thought.
 
F-605C, F705B, DWG 20

This is a tricky spot. I found a few great tips using the search function. Credit goes to these two links.
http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=60187&highlight=F-605C
http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=1233&highlight=F-605C

Here's how I did it. YMMV
Cut F705B to length. Measure F-605C. On mine the bends were perfect. The bends determine where everything lines up. From the first outboard bend, measure 2" outboard and make a line. The next bend should land 3-3/4" from the end line. The inboard end of the bar should be 12-1/2" from the end line. Yours may be different. Mark a line at 6-1/2" from the outboard end line. That's where the taper begins toward the inboard hole. Make another mark 12-1/2" from the outboard end line. On mine it was exactly at the end of the inboard end of the bar. Measure 1/4" from the inboard end line and make a mark exact center of the bar. Center punch and drill a pilot hole. Enlarge to #31. This will be the alignment hole.
Draw a center line the length of both of the F605C bars and the F705B bar.
Locate the exact center of F705B and make a mark, center punch, pilot hole then finish #31 hole. Cleko F705B to the F705A bulkhead and clamp the ends making sure the alignment line is centered in all the holes. Match drill the holes leaving the bolt holes. I use a bushing with #41 hole to drill the bolt holes then enlarge to #13.
Now cleko F605C in place using the hole in the inboard end, square the ends of F-605C and F705B then clamp the ends with a shim. Match drill F605C through F705A. Go back through and ream all holes to the final dimensions.
Fabricate the F705H spacers just a bit longer than 1-1/2" and draw the center line. Insert it into place, mark where the hole will actually be located. Remove, center punch, drill #41. Clamp the two F705H spacers together and match drill then enlarge up to #12 reamer. Disassemble.
Mark F705C for the relief taper and cut away the extra making sure the edge distances are followed. Cleko parts back together.
Relieve the edge of F705H to fit.
Finally, cleko it all back together. On mine I had to cut about 3/32" off the inboard ends of F605C to match the F705B bar. Some have to cut both ends. YMMV.
I'm not saying this is the right way, but it worked out well.
 
Last edited:
I've only just started building and still on the first plans page. I got to the step which says draw rivet lines on the HS-00001 as per the drawing shown below.
http://
280jia1.jpg

When you look at the part it's clear that the 3/16" and 1/4" dimensions can't be correct. I rang Van's and they confirmed it. The dimensions are actually 3/8" and 1/2". So it turns out the problem is that the plans I'm working from had a number of errors including the wrong rivet callouts and a few of these drawings managed to get out to new builders. Lucky me was one of them.

This is the drawing (DWG3 R3) with the errors.
http://
2mczh9t.jpg


And this is the drawing (DWG R4) that corrects everything.
http://
1zxqwls.jpg


If you happen to be using DWG3 R3, there is an updated and corrected DWG R4 available from Van's.
 
HS

Ian
I recently disassembled and reassembled my HS. My fault performing the service bulletin. In the process, I found all sorts of errors on the instructions and changed the order of some instructions. You may want to check out the Empennage section of my blog. The rebuild is towards the bottom of the Empennage page. Thanks for posted the plans change.
 
Thanks Larry. I've had a look at your blog - great stuff. The pictures of the finished items make so much of the plans confusion disappear. By the way, is it normal to spend more time staring at the plans than actually doing the building? :D
 
Plans

Thanks Larry. I've had a look at your blog - great stuff. The pictures of the finished items make so much of the plans confusion disappear. By the way, is it normal to spend more time staring at the plans than actually doing the building? :D

Boy if I had a penny for every minute staring at plans! :D
I'm glad it helped.
It gets really bad when you start the fuse. The manual gets pretty brief.
Add all that time spent looking for parts too.:eek:
I've got a pretty good tracking spreadsheet with a full inventory. If not for the location column, I would never find stuff.
 
By the way, is it normal to spend more time staring at the plans than actually doing the building? :D
Well, I have found that I have a choice. I can spend time staring at the plans instead of building, or I can spend time fixing stuff I got wrong because I didn't stare at the plans long enough.

:)
 
F-729B Angle, DWG 26

This one is a little gotcha but cost me a piece of angle.
The plan detail calls for the part to be cut 24-5/32. Cut it long. 24-5/16 is where mine ended up.
The reason is the hole where F-729C and F-729B are riveted together will end up far too close to the end of F-729B if cut to plan.
Start with a slightly long part. Drill the alignment hole in the aft end of F-729B. Cleko it in place and mark the part the longest you can safely fit against the forward flange of F-729A.
This will insure you have adequate hole edge distance when you match drill through F-729C.
Also, don't drill a hole in the top flange of the part. Allow the hole to fall where F-729C aligns.
 
Last edited:
F-718, DWG 18, Longerons

This is a small gotcha. Really just a way to keep information where new builders can easily find it.
I just completed the longeron bending using the Buller Enterprises dies. First a big thank you is in order. I cannot imagine doing this without them. Rather than duplicate, Ken posted an excellent write up so here is the link. Hope he doesn't mind.
http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=112709&highlight=longeron
The only change I made was taping both sides of the vertical flange and lubing both flanges and taped areas with Lubriplate. The dies work so well you really need to creep up on the bend slowly. Make one partial pass (about 90 degrees of vice handle) at each mark first to establish a starting curve then tweak the spots that need more. Watch the longeron as it tends to bend perpendicular to the big bend. If you correct it as you go, there's less to massage later. Use F-721B to verify the forward part of the bend and make sure you are using the location in the plans. It is not placed at the start of the bend. It's farther forward. Use the plans template to get the rest of the bend correct. There is more bend forward than at the aft end of the bend area. If you go too far, use the dies to hold the longeron with the vice jaws only tight enough to keep it it in place. Apply pressure and hit the longeron at the end of the dies to coax it back. It doesn't take much.
On the sharp forward bend, I used oak scraps, a hammer and vice. Apply pressure on the end and whack the bend area with a soft hammer. Work slowly and check often.
The twist is easy. Use a piece of oak or walnut. Just make slot a few inches from each end in opposite directions so the board can be used either direction. Trace the shape and drill holes to make a longeron angle shaped hole. Clamp the longeron at the line slide the twist board over the end and twist. Again work slowly and check the angle often.
The manual says to twist from both ends but the plans show the twist is only at the forward end.
YMMV
 
Last edited:
F-786A,B&C, DWG 18, Fuse J Stiffeners

F-786A,B&C J-stiffeners
The manual says cut them to length and prepare the ends. Ok.
The plans have length dimension. Ok.
There is a detail for F-786B-R Aft End Trim. Ok.
But then the plans Note says, "trim to fit all F-786 stringers. Fore and aft conditions vary depending on the bulkhead. For best fit, note the angle between stringer and bulkhead and trim accordingly."
What to do?
This one was frustrating. Probably my feeble mind.
The answer is cut them all to length first. I cut them all 1/2" too long just in case. They are tricky to cut and I wanted plenty of fudge factor. Make the detail relief cut on all of the forward ends. Remember to make left and right. Slide them in and make sure they fit the forward F-706 bulkhead. They can be final trimmed during assembly by making note of the aft angle and measurements, slide them out and trim the aft edge, slide it back in.
The part that drove me nuts was the note on the plan. I couldn't figure out how they fit into the bulkheads and if all six stiffeners were to be trimmed according to the detail or just the right, left, blah, blah. A simple note would suffice.
OK so trim all six to a starting length then make a right and left F-786 A,B&C using the detail. The second photo shows why they are trimmed.
Each fits into a slot in a bulkhead with the cut but they are all a tiny bit different.
Hope this helps someone avoid the hours of frustration I just experienced.
505k3m.jpg

10sggfr.jpg
 
Last edited:
F-779, F711, F-712, DWG27a

This is probably not the right way but it worked for me.
The manual basically says to assemble the tailcone then install it as an assembly. No workie! I found fitment issues and problems getting holes to line up. The row of holes along the bottom of the side skin and upper edge of the tailcone skin would not align. They progressively drift till the last hole was a hole off vertically. The tailcone was forced too far down. It all points to the bottom flange tabs on F-710, F-711 & F-712 and the shape of the F-779 skin.
Start the fuse assembly by drawing a centerline on the bottom skin and F-779 tailcone skin.
I also used an edge rolling tool to break the side skin edges a tiny bit so they would lay flat against the bottom skin and F-779 tailcone skin when riveted.
The tailcone skin is really stiff. Mine needed some adjustment to fit the side skins and bulkheads. This is a good place to start. I rolled the edges with my leading edge rolling jig and 3/4" pipe. It took two men to roll it. One to hold it down and one to crank on the pipe. Others had good luck with a ratchet strap. Which ever, make it fit closer to the shape of the bulkheads and cleko it in place without the J-stiffeners or bulkheads.
Install the parts to see if yours fits first. My first F-712 bulkhead was way off. The replacement was much better. Make nots of anything off alignment and disassemble.
Next, adjust the bottom flange tabs on the two aft bulkheads checking fit as you go. My F-710 bulkhead tabs were also off. It means putting parts in and taking them out over and over but in the end, it's worth it.
I have an old pair of Klein pliers with the jaws ground flat and polished. I put Gorilla tape on the jaws so it won't scar the aluminum and use them to gently adjust the bend of the tab. Don't unbend the original bend. Just adjust the bend a little. You could also tap them with a soft hammer. It isn't much. Maybe 1/64"-1/32". That's enough to cause serious binding and throw holes off.
Draw alignment marks on all the bulkhead flanges where no holes exist.
Once it all fits remove F-712 and slide in the J-stiffeners. Hold your ears. The make an unholy noise. Cleko as many holes as possible on the aft bulkheads then align the J-stiffener center line all the way to the aft hole and clamp it in place at the fore and aft end.
Mark or tape near the J-stiffener aft hole with a huge note, "Do Not Dimple skin, J-stiffener or bulkhead!" The rudder stop goes there and the holes don't get dimpled.
Now use plumb bobs to align the fuse to the centerline and start drilling. I used a #42 first to keep things tight. I started forward drilling every fourth hole working left and right and checking plumb lines and making sure holes were drilled on the J-stiffener center line. Once every fourth is drilled, go back and hit the ones in between. At this point you should have clekos in every other hole. Finish off the remaining holes then go back and final drill to size.
Hopefully this saves someone the week it took me to get it right including two new J-stiffeners and F-712 bulkhead.
 
Last edited:
Hi Larry
Good job!
Thank you for your contributions to this thread. It surely keep me from making mistakes.
regards
Arie
 
F-715, DWG 22

This is not a big gotcha, just a little head scratcher.
Vans manual has the builder install F-715 L&R ribs after the center fuse is riveted. I'm probably messing up but it just seemed logical to drill it while match drilling the rest of the center fuse. Time will tell if I'm wrong.
So I waited till everything else was clekoed.
Draw a center line on the bottom flange. Insert the rib. Mark the skin holes on the rib. Notice how far off they fall. My ribs needed a tiny bit removed from the forward edge, maybe 1/16", to fit. It will be bent a little by fluting so don't remove much. Flute the bottom flange till the line matches the skin holes. Match drill and cleko.
Now do the same with the upper flange to seat floors. There is no center line on top because the alignment is set by the position of the rib. The manual says to drill holes so the rib web is .032" outside the outboard edge of the floor. I used a couple scrap pieces of .032" offset and clekoed together to make a spacer shim. Flute till it is as close as possible then match drill.
The pain in all this fluting is the rib has to be removed to flute. Lots of installing and removing of parts unless your the Bodisatva of Fluting.
 
Center fuse riveting

It's been posted the center fuse ribs are a pain to rivet. I agree.
This is probably not a gotcha but may help someone down the road.
The step is riveting the seat ribs to the F-704 aft bulkhead then riveting the seat and baggage ribs to the F-705 bulkhead.
Start as directed with the seat ribs to F-704. The trick here is to do one at a time. Don't cleko them all in place. They will only be in the way and don't need to be there. Brace the bulkhead so you can work without it sliding around. Work slow. Work slow. Did I repeat? Yes, work slow. Use Gorilla tape on the factory head so you don't make smileys.

On to the hard part. Again, work one rib at a time. Insert rivets from aft side. The baggage ribs flex enough to get a gun on the factory side. Brace the bulkhead so you can push on the gun. Use the Gorilla tape. Remember the shims on the center four seat ribs.
Get a piece of windshield washer hose from the local auto parts store. 1/8" ID. Cut a piece slightly longer than the rivet shank. Use it on every rivet to keep the rib flange from lifting. You can remove it after a few hits once the rivet has swelled enough to hold the parts tight. The tough rivets are the top ones. It's tough to get a bar in that tiny space. Hopefully you have a bar that will fit in the space.

It took a while but only one rivet had to be drilled.
 
Aft fuse bulkhead longeron slots

Not a gotcha but may save some bad words.
When you prep the aft fuse bulkheads, check the fit of the longeron slots.
Mine were too narrow. A few bad word and a fine file and the longeron slides right in but it is much easier to prep them. It's not easy to handle 15' of longeron and find out it won't fit!:eek:
So if you file the slot, remove material off the bottom side of the slot, not the top. The top edge sets the position of the longeron relative to the edge of the side skin.
 
Joining Center and Aft fuselage/side skins

This one is also not a "gotcha" but it is one of those head scratching, profanity laced moments.
Joining is not top bad. This is all based on the fuse upside down per manual. Get a helper or two or four.
Leave the baggage skins off for now. Seat skins are ok. Leave F623 corner ribs off as well. Flip the center fuse and place the forward F704 assembly on a sturdy saw horse.
Slide it back so the center fuse skin is on top of the aft fuse skin. Now move it back till the baggage rib tabs slide into place on the inside of F706. Cleko skin and baggage ribs in place.

Now the profanity commences.
If yours is like many, when you cleko the side skins on, the forward skin is about 1/2" off toward the top of the airplane.
I started by placing a 1"X 2" shim under each of the F704 C,D,H uprights with the longeron inside and out of the way. Move the center sawhorse to just aft of the F707 bulkhead and place blocks under the fuse at that point. I use 4"x4"s. This gives you a fulcrum to move the F706 bulkhead up and down by lifting or pressing down on the tail. Like a teeter totter.
Next cleko the skin to the F704 and F705 bulkheads.
Now you need another person to move the tail till you get close enough to insert a pic in a hole. I found the hole at the intersection of the two skins, F706 and F786B J-stiffener worked best. Move the tail till you get close enough to muscle the parts that final bit and the pic will go in. Once a pic went in, my wife put a cleko in the holes above and below. The rest was easy.
Remove the shims under the F704 assembly, allow the longeron to slide over. The assembly rests on top of the longeron flange. Place clamps to keep parts stable.
Remove the blocks on the saw horse at F707 and put shims and clamps on either side of the fuse at each saw horse to keep the fuse from sliding off.

suveas.jpg
 
Last edited:
canopy decks

my manual says on page 8-10 to rivet both side rails, canopy decks and gussets. I took this to mean part f-721a forward canopy deck but on page 8-20 is when you get detailed directions on installing f-721a this is when you want to fit f-721a as it must fit between the side rail and front bulkhead.
 
F-770 conical bend

This one definitely can be a gotcha.
Start by deburring the relief hole at the forward bend radius. If you're building an "A" model, I recommend not drilling the step holes until after the bend is done. The hole creates a weak spot and the bend doesn't come out uniform.
A template of the bend helps.
You'll need two pieces of scrap angle.
One holds the skin down at the bend line. It needs to be longer than the bend. Sand the edge to a radius similar to the forward end bend. No sharp edges on the forward end. Clamp at both ends.
The other angle is "torque wrench". Clamp it in place and mark the holes. Remove, punch, drill #40 and debur. Sand the angle at the forward end of it and also round the end and make sure there's no sharp edges.
Now the tricky part. Clamp a vice grip on the end of the torque angle. Have a set of smooth jaw pliers or seaming pliers handy.
Twist the bend and try to form the sharp bend without allowing the part to relax. I know it sounds dumb but that flexing is sure to crack the bend at the forward end. My first one cracked. :eek: That's why I'm posting the solution I used on the second.
The sharp forward bend needs to be centered on the relief hole.
If you can't do both, get that forward bend first and try not to allow the bend to relax. Get as close as possible and disassemble to check the bend with the template. The less flexing the better. If you get close, leave it alone and see how it fits. Best of luck.

Edit 05/27/2015
I called Vans about the crack. It was about 1/8" long. The answer was to use a chain saw round file to remove the crack plus 1/16"-1/8" beyond then fill with proseal.

2cz5921.jpg
[/IMG]
4g6dcx.jpg
[/IMG]
 
Last edited:
I got a crack in the second skin I bent, after getting the first one right. Van's told me the same thing, but I couldn't stand it, so bought another skin and was more careful about exactly where the edge of the bench was relative to the relief hole, and how aggressively I bent it.
 
When starting this step, not only do you need to deburr the relief hole at the forward bend radius, but you need to POLISH the hole edges.

I deburred then polished the hole(s) and bent both skins without cracks. It is a big bend culminating at the relief hole, there is a lot of residue stress centered at the relief hole.

Cheers
 
Last edited:
Conical bend "pusher"

I found that using "pusher" used in conjunction during the bend operation with the vice grips worked well for me. I used the piece of PVC pipe with a T at the end (which resembled my tool for screwing in rod-ends to a stunning degree) to push back on skin from the inside surface when I was loading up the vice grips. This helped to bend the skin where I wanted to bend. No cracks.

I also did a dry run with some scrap sheet to practice the whole thing ... time well spent.

Too bad you have that "big hole" in the skin near the bend ... mine has only has a small rivet there. ;-)

160z9le.jpg
 
Last edited:
Wing scarf joint

The instructions for the scarf joint appear in the plans AFTER they have you dimple the skins. But in fact, you need to scarf the skins BEFORE you dimple.

Otherwise, according to Vans, you shouldn't scarf the outboard skin with the dimples. When I mentioned that the order in the plans was wrong, they told me I should read all the plans before working.

Okay.
 
Rudder Stop

I spent a lot of time and material learning how to do a rudder stop on my RV-7A. I thought I would offer this to others because once I figured it out it was easy.

2gvltgh.jpg
[/IMG]

Setup:
Use basic material as described by Vans. Set the size by requirement for hole clearance and align bracket edge with aft edge of fuselage skin. You will need to refer to Vans drawing for basic hole location and overall sizes. I?m only covering the technique that really helps.

Red line:
Attach the rough rudder stop to the fuselage and mark the spot (see arrow in ISO view) where the rudder horn contacts the rough rudder stop. Verify that rudder to elevator gap is > 1 1/8" (more like 2"). Trim as defined by the red line. Attach to the fuselage and verify the gap is still > 1 1/8". I?d drill and cleco all holes to ensure the stop to skin interface surface is in the position it will be in when riveted. Any tilt in the bracket will change your gap. Also back drill the aft two holes to ensure clearance from the vertical stabilizer brace. This helps when solid riveting the aft two holes.

Blue line:
Carefully and very gradually trim the red line surface following the blue lines until the rudder skin to aft elevator tip gap is 1 1/8".

Green line:
Clean up following Vans drawing making the bracket more aerodynamic.
 
Firewall measurement

Maybe not a "gotcha" but a but it's annoying.
The manual says to draw a center line on the firewall bottom angle then position it and cleko the bottom skin, F-772. Then it says to align the center line with the second set of holes and drill one on each end. This supposedly positions the firewall. Then on the next page it says to make sure the forward face of the firewall is 5/8" from the edge of the side skins, F-770.
Ok but the plans clearly show a dimension of 5/8" from the AFT face of the firewall to the forward edge of the bottom skin. The center line does not position the firewall exactly at that dimension. Probably was my center line. It wasn't much. 1/32" on one end. Maybe it's not a huge deal but I used clamps every foot or so and used a caliper to measure .655" all the way around. That's 5/8" + .030" (the thickness of the firewall). That positions it perfectly square and where the plans show.
 
f644 tipup

page 8-20 under tip-up installing front deck. add note read page 9.1 for more instructions concerning f-644
 
7a Gear Tower holes in F-772 bottom skin

Here's a tip for others.
When you get to cutting the holes for the gear leg towers in the F-772 bottom forward skin, this may help.

Copy the template on DWG 34a. Make a few. Punch the rivet holes out with a sharp piece of 1/16" tubing.
Remove the nutplates interfering on the F-704 top flange. You can't get the gear tower in with them there. Reinstall them later. Thanks Vans.
Remove the two forward seat floors.
Remove the two F--782B Cover Support Ribs. Also in the way. Thanks Vans.
Lay the template on the skin. Mark the line. Do the same on the F-704 flange and center skin. I used a Dremel with a metal cutter bit for all the work including the gear holes. With a little pressure, it cuts along a line and with very light pressure it barely removes material. I can hold it like a pencil and draw along an edge very precisely. go in the dire tion of tbe rotation so it doesn't gouge.
Cut the relief hole including the extra shown. It's pretty close.
Cut the relief area on F-704 also but leave extra to fine tune the fit. Watch that one rivet hole. I checked with Vans. They approved busting the minimum edge distance but remember those five holes get double flush rivets so you will countersink the F-704 flange on the inside and the bottom skin layers on the outside. The final relief should leave enough material so the countersink doesn't encroach on the edge.
Fit the gear tower first. Slowly remove material till is fits flush against F-704C. Use drift pins to make sure you have the tower where it should land. Clean up the edges.
Cleko F-772 bottom forward skin in place. Note the edge where you relieved F-704. You need to relieve the skin hole to match.
Now try to install the gear tower. Note where additional material needs to come off. It's probably on the forward and inboard areas of the hole. I use a fine tip Sharpie to make a line along the edge. This helps to see how much material is being removed. Don't take more than a line off at a time.
Keep trial fitting till the gear tower plops right into place.
Now cleko a clean template to the perfect hole. Go inside and mark the hole. Remove and cut the new template hole. Cleko to the other side and you have a mirror that should fit perfect.

2urnyw8.jpg
 
Last edited:
I see you are coming right along. one thing that I messed up on was the floor stiffner angles, yip, got them all riveted on then go to put the floor sheet on and the holes didn't line up....what a pain to drill those angle rivets out.
 
Back
Top